Play-By-Playmate: Jaime's College Bracket

Share

Jaime's filled out her bracket for the first time. See all her picks and the unconventional way she came to them.

So I’ll be honest. This is my first college basketball bracket.

I know, I know. “How can this your first bracket Jaime?” “Don’t you know how amazing it is?!” That’s what you’re all saying but listen, I’m a football gal, born and raised, and when there is no football on I’m watching the boys of summer play baseball. I just never got into college basketball, what with it running between crucial times of both football and baseball, playoffs and spring training. It had just never drawn me in.

Then, wow. I hopped on Playboy.com’s bracket and started making my picks and I was little surprised. All I could do was smile, a big shit-eating grin that got bigger every time I picked a team to advance. I was giddy. I didn’t know this was so much fun. I haven’t had been this excited about a sporting event in a while.

It’s like any given Sunday, any team can win. In baseball, no one game brings down a season. In football it’s understood that making the playoffs is a feat in and of itself. But this? These kids just played their hearts out in their conference tournaments and now they turn around and play on an even bigger stage? A single elimination stage? A few bad moves, a turnover here or there and it’s all over. Just like that. POOF! Gone. That’s what I call pressure.

So I’ve made my picks and you can see them all at pbbracket.com, but before I start getting tweeted at by all you ferocious college hoops fans let me explain how a few of these were made. Remember this is my first time! I didn’t get to crazy. Go easy on me.

I figured that with a 108-0 record it was a safe bet to take all the number one seeds to advance to second round. With numbers like that you’ve gotta go with history. Ditto the two seeds who’ve only lost four times in the first round. I’m playing it safe.

Once I got to the eight and nine seeds I figured it was time to start doing some research considering it’s such a close matchup. I discovered that it’s pretty well a 50-50 split when it comes to these games so I took a different tack.

Alabama/Creighton? I love saying “roll tide.” ROLL TIDE! When college football was in season there was an entire day when I only answered questions saying roll tide! Seriously, the guy at the grocery store asked me if I wanted paper or plastic bags and I said ROLL TIDE! He gave me both. I picked Alabama.

Kansas State/Southern Miss? Went with mascots on this one. I figure if I were to be a mascot I’d be more like a Wildcat than a Golden Eagle. I’m a little bit wild, a little bit fierce. Pretty feisty and a redhead (we’re all feisty) so I went with the ‘Cats.

Memphis/Saint Louis? The old uni approach. If all else fails whoever has the sexier uniforms wins. Right? RIGHT? I took Memphis.

And for the final eight versus nine, UConn/Iowa State I took a playground approach and went with the eenie meenie miny mo.

Let’s see, what else is going on with this bracket? OH! A 12 seed always makes a run! (I’m turning into a college basketball history buff trying to figure this thing out). So, 12 seeds have made it to the round of sixteen just as many times as a 10 seed has, they’ve made it five more times than an eight or a nine seed combined, and are only two shy when it comes to seven seeds. I see a trend and this year I’m picking Long Beach State to make a run.

I only have one top seed in the final four, I have Michigan State the first top seed to fall and have none of them in the final game. My pick for the tourney? FSU BABY! Gotta go with the home state heroes. They beat both Duke and UNC twice this season, something that hasn’t been done since ’95 and their getting hot when it counts. This is there year. Go Noles!

Think you can do better than Jaime? Head on over to Pbbracket.com to start filling out yours today! Give us a tweet or a follow on facebook to let us know you’re in on the game and let Jaime know you came to win.